Washington Nationals right fielder Bryce Harper admittedly backed off a bit when pursuing what became a game-tying triple in the ninth inning of Tuesday night’s extra-inning loss to the San Francisco Giants.

While admirable, that accountability apparently wasn’t enough for Nationals closer Rafael Soriano, who suffered a blown save because of that Gregor Blanco triple.

“With two outs and the tying run at first, you have to play the outfield so the ball doesn't go over your head,” Soriano told USA Today. "It may not have been a catchable ball, but if we're positioned the right way, there might have been a different outcome. With two outs, I could tell my four-year-old son, 'You know where you need to play,' and he would have positioned himself better. It's not an excuse, and I'm not speaking badly about anybody, but I think that's how you play the game.”

Soriano on Wednesday backed off on those comments, which he said were made in a joking manner and which he believed were off the record.

“I tried to do my job and I didn’t do it,” Soriano said in Spanish in a telephone interview with The Washington Post. “(The play) wasn’t an error. He was in the position and I threw the pitch I shouldn’t have. And that’s what happened."

Soriano also discussed the matter with Harper before the Nationals' 2-1, 10-inning victory Wednesday afternoon.

Nationals manager Davey Johnson tried to be diplomatic about the whole thing, but he put more of the blame on Soriano for the pitch.

“Were we back against the wall doubles prevention, where everything drops in front? No,” Johnson said, according to The Washington Post. “And who expects Blanco, a little guy like that, to hit a line-drive bullet that short-hopped the wall?

"Let’s not panic here and overreact to the situation. The pitch wasn’t as good as it should have been. Maybe (Harper) wasn’t as deep as he should have been. That’s baseball. You can second-guess everything that goes on in this game. But I know a little more about it than most. And I’m not concerned with it.”

Harper and Soriano both played big roles in Wednesday's win. Harper homered in the sixth and scored the go-ahead run in the 10th.

Of greater interest, he also made a diving catch in right field to preserve a tie. He also hurt his knee on the play but stayed in the game.

"I'm just glad I caught it," he said. "It's still in my head and I have to try and get past it. It's just going to take time."